Prosecute Men Who Killed Foxes in Front of Children

In the past decade or so, the sport of fox hunting with hounds has become illegal in Great Britain. The law remains controversial. In some cases, people are reluctant to give up the traditional country sport. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) has also been criticized over public prosecutions of violators of the law.

However, a recent case in Devon brings the controversy back into the public discourse. A group known as the Modbury Harriers was photographed using hounds and terriers to hunt and kill two foxes. At the scene were three young children brought by the terrierman who saw the foxes killed.

Members of the hunt have said they were operating in a legal manner, but the chief executive of the Leage Against Cruel Sports has said: "This horrific incident of animal cruelty shows not only a total disregard for the dogs and foxes but also for the welfare of the children. Terrier work is abhorrently cruel." A sheep farmer who saw the killing occur on neighboring land maintains foxes have not been a problem in the area.

Sign the petition to urge the RSPCA to prosecute these men to the full extent of the law.

We, the undersigned, put our names to this petition to express our disgust at the fox hunt carried out by the Modbury Harriers. Whether or not the use of terriers to flush out the foxes was legal in this case, the use of hounds is not covered in the law's exceptions. Furthermore, the fact that children were brought to witness the killing is unconscionable. We ask that they be prosecuted to the fullest extent allowable under the Hunting Act.